What? That good-for-nothing Penny again.
“No, I didn’t receive anything,” I sputtered.
Right now, the redhead was a thorn in my side. That woman purposely didn’t send me any information so that I’d look like a fool in front of these professionals. Well, screw that! I was going to rock this photo shoot just to spite her and prove a point.
Andre nodded. “Okay. No biggie, but here it is for you to look over. Let me know if you have any questions. Do you think you could sign it today?”
I took the clipboard from his hand while the women pulled off my sneakers. Reading the contract, I nearly fainted. Marc Janow was offering me a one-year contract to be their spokesperson for one million dollars.
One. Million. Dollars.
I was literally hyperventilating a little, my head light.
“You okay?” Andre asked, his face a mask of concern. “Someone get some water please.”
But I recovered in time, forcing myself to look up.
“Um yeah, I’m ready to sign,” I said.
“Perfect,” said Andre happily. “Here’s a pen. And here’s some water too, you look like you need it.”
With numb fingers, my signature was soon on the line, signed, sealed and delivered. Holy cow. Shock was threatening to carry me to a new dimension because suddenly, this was taking on fairy tale proportions. I was still Mia, but also something more now. I was a beautiful woman wearing a designer gown, about to embark on a million-dollar modeling contract.
Who said that only supermodels win? Clearly, the regular girl was doing just fine.
And with an encouraging smile, Tania spoke. “You’re all dressed and ready to go. Totally camera-ready.”
Gina grinned as well.
“Come on, I’ll take you to where we’re set up.” She led me out of the conference room. Brushing a strand of hair out of my face, the makeup artist spoke. “Relax, honey. You’re going to be great, Mia, you look fab.”
I took a deep breath. “Thank you.” In my head, Penny’s bitter face came to me. I wasn’t going to let myself choke for her benefit.
The set-up took my breath away. Lights and a photographer were set up in front of Theo’s abstract painting in the lobby hallway. A grizzled old guy with a camera draped around his neck saw me coming and thrust out a paw.
“Mia, great to meet you. I’m Scotty. We’ll be working together on this shoot.”
Gina cut in gently, “Mia’s a little nervous seeing that it’s her first time. So be gentle, Scotty.” She laughed.
The old guy chuckled as well.
“No problem. This’ll be a nice change from the spoiled girls out there who order me around,” he said drolly. “Just be you, that’s usually what works best.”
My stomach turned when he said that because these people didn’t know me. I was a nerd, someone shut away most of the time, my head buried in books if not programming in the wee hours of the morning. The real me was someone who hated being on camera.
But something had changed in the last couple weeks. Maybe it was the exposure, or more likely, it was meeting Theo Wainwright himself because the CEO constantly told me I was beautiful, praising my curves and adoring my brains and body. If Theo liked it, then maybe there was something there. Maybe I was more than just another girl nerd, locked in the dungeon of her computer lab.
So taking a deep breath, I put a confident smile on my face. Hey, might as well work it, right?
Scotty held the camera up. “That’s perfect,” he said. “Take a couple deep breaths, Mia.”
I closed my eyes and breathed in and out slowly, envisioning Theo here with me. That did it. His male presence warmed me from the inside out, making me feel empowered and womanly. When I opened my eyes, the camera flashed, startling me. I felt stupid for jumping.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “Didn’t expect that.”
Scotty just nodded, speaking in a soothing voice. “Don’t be sorry. I want you to channel the energy you had in the photo that made you famous. Just relax and let go.”
It was impossible to do that, given that the first time, I’d been goofing off on a rooftop with my best friend. That was nothing compared to the professional production laid out here, where I was posing for money.